Lock



Apr. 17, 1923. 1,452,393

F. P. SHEK LOCK Filed March 8. 1922 BY W5 ATTO EY Patented Apr. 17, 1 923.

UNITEDCSTATES,

FRANK P. SHEK, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

LOCK.

' Application filed. March 8, 1922. Serial No. 541 920.

T 0 all whom it may concern -Be it known that I, FRANK P. SHEK, a

citizen of the UnitedStates, and-a resident of Brooklyn, county oflKings, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Locks, of which the following is specification.

This invention relates to an improved -lock.that is adapted for many purposes and can be quickly snapped shut, and is :preferablyreleasable'by a key, and further, is substantially flat-and comparatively small, so that it can be easily carried in the pocket.

Thelock is further designed to provide a means for suspending articles from the shackle when the shackle is fixed to a support, andis also designed so that the lock itself can be secured. both to the articleto be suspended and itself, in turn, suspended from a fixed'object and locked thereto, which construction also makes itpossible touse the.

lock for fastening'two' elements together,

such as mail bags or the like, so that they will not become accidentally separated.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a side view of one form of lock embodying my invention, the lock being open so that its lower loop or end is accessible for the securing of an object thereto. Figure 2 is a side view with one of the plates of the lock casing removed and the lock casing slid down so that it bridges an opening in. the shackleto close the lock. Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 1, but with the casing slid down to open the other end of the shackle. Figure i is a section on line 4.4: in Figure 1. Figure 5 is a perspective view of the parts of the casing separated, and Figure 6 is a detail view showing a modified form of the upper portion of the shackle.

The shackle can be made of any desired material, but is preferably made of very stout round wire, and is formed with a strand 10 and has closed ends, usually by bending the wire in a return bend so as to form open loops. these return bends 11 and 12 merging into the strand 13, which strand 13 has an opening therein, since the ends of the wire are spaced apart; in other Words, do not meet. and it is through this opening that the articles to be suspended or locked are passed into the closed ends of the lock.

The casing 14 slides on the shackle by having a portion thereof encircling both' strands of the shackle, and the preferred, I l

form of lock casing that I employ consists.

of two plates 15 and 16 which are recessed at 17 and 18, respectively, at the top and bottom, :whic-h top-and bottom edges are flanged, as at 19, these recesses 17 and 18 forming openings for the passage of thestrands of the shackle.

Theplates 15 and 16 are suitably secured together, but I may use a combined securing means and spring holder consisting of a bar 20 which'has studs or pins 21 projecting from the opposite sides, which fit through holes 22 in the plates 15 and 16 and are then headed, as at 23, to securethe parts together. The bar can be-utilized to holdthe spring 24, which is fastened to the bar 20, by any suitable means, such as by bending over the bar, asat25, to embrace'the end 26 of the spring to keep the spring fro-m rising, the spring having its end 27 bent preferably at rightangles or transversely to the strand 10.

The strand 10 has a detent 28.which is disposed so that'when the casing bridges the opening in the shackle the end 27 of the spring 2st snaps into the detent and is held therein against longitudinal movement, so that the casing is locked in this position.

Suitable releasing means, such as the key 29 insertible through the key-hole 30, can be used to release the spring. When the spring is released and the casing is slid to uncover the opening, the friction of the spring will usually hold the casing in nonlocking position, but 'to hold it so that it fully uncovers the opening and is held in position either under vibration or jarring, I provide a recess 31 in the strand 10 into which the end of the spring 24 rests, but it only holds the casing lightly, because by simply taking the casing between a finger and the thumb of one hand the casing can be dislodged and slid down to locking position.

The lock is adapted for use in closets and wardrobes, and in public places where coats If the device is to be used for securing two elements together it can be used as above described, which description has illustrated how the open loop 12, which forms a hook, can be opened and closed, but

in case the other end 11 is to be used, the

lock is unlocked and the casing can be slid down, as shown in Figure 3, to uncover the end 84 of the strand 13, so that the upper loop or hook is available, and while I may make the lock so that only one end of the shackle can be made accessible through'the opening in the shackle, I prefer to make it so that both ends can be used, that is, the casing can be slid to both sides of the opening.

To permit its use in a wardrobe, the lower loop or hook 12 at its end 35 can be rounded to prevent perforation of coats or articles caught on it, and in this case there is enough clearance between the end 35 and the opening that it enters to allow a fold of the material to be grasped thereby, which will be clear from Figure 2.

This lock is found advantageous also in places where it is necessary to preserve such things as burlap bags and similar articles from theft, in that they can be caught over the hook 13 after they are emptied, such as in rubbish collections and the like, and then by simply pulling down the casing 14 the bags are locked in position.

I claim:

1. A look comprising a shackle formed into open loops at the ends, the ends of the strand at one side being spaced apart to I y u b a tion when it bridges the opening.

A look comprising a shackle formed of parallel strands and having closed ends, one of the strands having an opening therein, a cas ng formed of plates with recesses therein so that the assembled plates will slide on the strands, abar having projections thereon, theplates of the casing having openings through which the projections can pass and be headed, a spring secured to the bar with its end bearing on one of the strands and substantially at right angles thereto, said strand having a detent disposed so that when the spring is in it the casing is locked when in position across the opening, said strand having also a slight depression disposed so that when in engagement with the spring it will hold the casing frictionally in non-locking position.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing, I have hereto set my hand, this 2nd day of March, 1922.

FRANK P. SHEK. 

